Dancing in Shoes Too Big to Fill
by anesor
Summary: Aula's determined make her mark in ruined Neverwinter to show her secretive family she's grown up. She'll ferret more important secrets than her past, to build a Codex better than dated Volo. That's after ruins, demons, & running around in circles screaming. (Crossover: NWN & Neverwinter MMO)


_The Neverwinter Nights series and Neverwinter MMO world, plot, and canon characters aren't mine but belong to many corporate entities: including WOTC, Bioware, Atari, Obsidian, and Cryptic/Forge. Aula and other charactersare my creations. I get no money for writing this story. _

_- x x -_

**Neverwinter, the Beggar's Nest -**

_- Aula_

The beggar's market was crowded, with travelers' horses trying to gallop through the rest of the crowd. No guard bothered to challenge them, and Aula heard her father's scolding voice telling her that she _should_ do something.

She wanted to tell the memory to shut up.

Instead, the rogue entered the short alley and spotted the inn's sign-board, swinging a little in the breeze. This time the board had been broken lengthwise into two pieces and was being held together by a long leather strap. Her papa didn't see any reason to waste coin on permanent repairs.

Mother picked her battles and a sign-post didn't rate.

The light shining out through the tiny windows was a comfort after a long day dodging orcs in the ruins of another quarter. At least she had a safe place for a kip, even if her family could drive a celestial crazy.

Aula opened the door, and there was only a pause in the customer chatter as she looked around the quiet but not quite dim room.

The barman's glare softened when he saw her, but he only nodded.

Swiping more gunk off her short and flaxen hair, Aula wasn't surprised when Papa pushed a stranger drunk off the bar to give her one of the few spaces.

Papa grinned at his bedraggled daughter as his old Companion wagged his tail, then he drew an ale for her. "I can't remember orcs leaving me slimy, did you drop into the sewers, yeanling?"

That made her laugh. "No, some spell went astray on an empty street, hitting me with a downburst of frogs. I never saw who cast it."

He frowned and glared around the tavern before glancing at her again. "Your mother will be pissed that you go alone. She still scolds me."

"Father is even worse... so I'd better wash up, right?"

Papa grinned and took a drink, too. "Any interesting secrets to add to your store?"

Aula knew her parents were disappointed that she followed Oghma, instead of the martial and nature ones they favored. Mother understood more. They talked lore far into the night, but Mother had a red steel disk for the Red Knight that she got in exile.

She slung her pack off onto the bar, just missing their drinks. "I got another handful of damaged tomes and small artifacts. I can't quite believe that Neverwinter was ever intact, despite your stories."

"A lotta places are stranger than here, we told you _that_ often enough." He paused. "But you're yawny tonight and I'll let someone else put you to sleep with a lecture."

"Thanks, Papa." Aula yawned enough to crack her jaw, and scratched Tiwora behind his ears. Upstairs, she dropped her pack on her bed for now and found the best washroom was empty. She hadn't planned to heat the water, but it was warm and she dozed in the copper tub. She had to hurry down and found her mother helping the cook.

Mama's smoke gray hair was in one of Papa's neat braids, but her hug was warm. "You waited this long to find me?"

"Don't nag, Mama. You knew I was fine as soon as I walked in."

Mama smirked. "I'm allowed to fret. If I don't, I'll get thrown out of the mother's guild."

"I'm fine, good blood and all that." Aula sighed. "I haven't been able to find that cache Father remembers. There's no sign that it was found and reused either."

"Don't obsess about it, kitten. Your father would appreciate it, but there are more important jobs."

"Like being a guard? I don't think so!" Aula shook her head violently. "I can't see why anyone would want to. Adventurers crawl over most of the city like soldier ants and they're just as mindless."

Mama snorted. "You sound so much like your Papa, he never liked them either. Even when he'd go out looking for a brawl."

Her daughter rolled her eyes, too familiar with the stories of her parents' youth. "I found some good stuff about some drow colonies. The mage who hired me as guard was a coward, and no help when undead rose."

"You'll have to tell us after we close down for the night, sooner if you help."

This was normal and eventually when both the halfling cook and wench left, Aula brought her pack back down to show them her finds.

Father was moving stiffly again, his joints gave him more problems than Papa or Mama. Tiwora tried to climb into his lap again as if he was still a puppy, but Papa did some temporary healing.

"You find some scandalous yellowbacks about old Nasher and his spurned lover, Aribeth?" Papa didn't hide his leer.

Mama ignored Father's glare at Papa. "What did you discover, kitten?"

Aula spread her finds out on the table. "I found that there are an awful lot of sewers that are fairly intact after destruction and Spellplague. I wish there had been a good map before the Luskan invasion because I swear these sewers go out further than the old city walls."

"Some did," Papa said with a laugh. "Smuggling was so much easier that way."

Father smiled. "What make you suspicious, my little scholar?"

The swampy water pool where she'd fought were-rats came to mind. "These tunnels were all formally finished and made originally finished like temples. Huge roots may be destroying those tunnels but few were rough and unfinished."

Mother's fingers twitched to investigate the books.

"This was from in wrecked home in Blacklake." When Aula brought out the book and unsnapped the cover, instead of a listing of temples in Neverwinter, a brimstone fog started rolling from the closed book.

She drew her daggers and knocked the table over.

_- x -_

_A/N: Challenge words are yawny, yeanling, and yellowback. Thanks to my beta readers who have been kind enough to read this and point out stupid flubs. Any typos that remain are not intentional... Reviews or a PM to let me know what you think would be very appreciated._


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